


Good Planning

by alexa82



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: J2 AU Dragons, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-31
Updated: 2015-08-31
Packaged: 2018-04-18 09:30:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4700954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alexa82/pseuds/alexa82
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A dragon walks into Jared's bar...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Good Planning

A dragon walked into a bar. Jared took another look – yes, it was definitely a dragon. No human’s eyes were completely black. His bartender quickly walked to the store room. A group of werewolves abandoned the karaoke machine and disappeared in the direction of the men’s room. The exodus continued until only Jared was left in the room.

“Hi.” His momma taught him well, after all.

The dragon looked at him curiously. “Hey.” The voice was pretty human-sounding. “I’m not gonna ask why you aren’t running away. I’m sure you have your reasons.” The man looked around. “Any way to get a drink here?”

“Sure. If you take me riding, I’ll get you a drink.” Yes, he said it. His eighth grade English assignment had been “Getting What You Want in Five Easy Steps.” Step one: define a goal. This goal has been on his To-Do list for five years now. Step two: Put yourself in a position to advance your goal. Which is why he had bought the only pub operating close to the Dragon Reserve. Step three: Ask for what you want. Done.

“Seriously? That’s not even a little bit subtle.” The dragon paused. “Who are you anyway?”

“I’m the owner. So I can definitely guarantee a drink. And I bet you’d rather give one person a ride than spend any of your hoard on a drink…”

“Someone’s an expert.”

“A week of free drinks.” He had considered offering a lifetime, but he knew how much dragons drank. He’d go bankrupt. Also – that would hurt step five.

“Make it a year and you have yourself a deal.”

“A month.”

“Six.”

“Two.”

“Six.”

“Three and I’ll ride you in this form as well.”

Pause. “Deal.”

“What can I get you?” And just like that he completed step four: Close the deal.

***

The ride was supposed to be a one-time thing. The dragon, Jensen, agreed to give him a quarter of an hour in the air, Tuesday evening. To be followed by sex. With a dragon. Which he may or may not survive. But hey, “Risk Nothing - Gain Nothing” had been the topic of his ninth grade paper.

Jared arrived at the reserve at eight. Dressed casually, lubed up, and excited. He’d updated his will, too. “Be Ready for Any Eventuality” had been his Boy Scout presentation in third grade.

“Get on.” Jensen was in his dragon form. Jared took his time to look at the beast. The dragon form was covered in black scales, the head had sharp spikes, narrow black eyes and a vast maw. The dragon’s torso was long and narrow, with six legs and large membranous wings. The tail was as long as the body, if a bit thinner.

“I don’t have all day, you know.”

“Patience is a virtue that helps us appreciate life.”

“Were you dropped on the head as a child?”

Jensen wasn’t the first to ask him that question. “Where would it be alright for me to sit?”

“Between the neck and shoulders. Climb up the leg then hold on to the spikes.”

Jared approached and touched the hide. His hands were shaking. Nonetheless the grabbed hold and climbed. Stepping on firm flesh and clinging to hard scales he climbed to the neck and mounted. As he grabbed the spikes he realized that there was no way he’d be able to hold on if the dragon did any fancy maneuvering. The neck was too wide to mount properly and the spikes were too smooth to be good handles. His hands were still shaking. He hoped the dragon wanted his three months of drinks more than he wanted to get rid of an annoying human.

“Ready?”

“Yes.”

***

He survived. It wasn’t only his hands that shook now. His legs trembled so much his walk was unsteady. His mind was full of the mind-blowing feeling of being in the air, blasted by wind, on a living, moving, giant. He didn’t make a sound throughout the flight; he had forgotten how to. He still had nothing to say. Nothing in his life would compare to the adrenalin rush of this experience. He grinned.

“Satisfied?”

“Yes. Thank you. Thank you very much. You’re most welcome at my bar, anytime.”

In a blink of an eye a human Jensen was standing before him. Jared noticed Jensen’s nipples were hard. Did he feel the cold in this form?

“You want to have sex now? Or some other time?” Jensen asked.

“Now. Fuck, so now.”

Jensen grinned. “Good answer.”

***

He survived the sex. He had even less words to describe it than he had had for the ride.

“Do you want me to call you a cab?”

Jared looked up at the dragon; he was already half dressed and looking distant. Apparently Jared was being kicked out. Unpleasant.

“I drove here. Give me a few minutes and I’ll be out.” He had been planning to ask the dragon which liqueur the beast preferred, to stockpile on it ahead of time, but asking that while being kicked out would make him sound like a doormat. Fuck it, the dragon could drink what was available. Jared’s bar had a good selection. He got dressed quickly, but not too quickly, and walked out, working hard not to stumble. All in all – still the best night of his life, even with the shitty ending.

***

A dragon walked into Jared’s bar.

“Same as last time?”

“Yes.”

Jared poured a snifter of brandy and left the bottle on the bar top. He’d seen how Jensen drank before. Then he walked away to tend to other customers. He found there were none. They all ran away again. Jared went to check his stock in the storage room.

***

Almost three months later Jared was singing Karaoke with the werewolves when the dragon walked in. Jared nodded to him when Jensen looked in his direction but didn’t worry about attending him. The staff knew the dragon by now, and knew that the liqueur was on the house.

It was a testament to how frequently the man came by, that the werewolves didn’t pause in their rendition of “I Got You Babe”. Jared didn’t pause either.

 

It was a couple of hours later, as Jared was getting ready to go up to his flat, that Jensen approached him. He was not unexpected.

“Jared. How are you?”

“I’m pretty awesome. Yourself?”

“Good. Would be better if you extended your hospitality a bit.”

“A deal is a deal. It was three months.” Jared felt it was impolite to be so business like, especially with a man he’d slept with, but then… he didn’t like being kicked out.

“Which is why I’m offering another ride. For six months this time. Half an hour for six months.”

“That was a great ride, both of them were, and we both know I’ll agree, but I don’t want a deal for six months. I’d prefer fifteen minutes. For three months. I don’t think I can handle a full half hour anyway.”

“Sissy.”

“That I am. So… deal?” Jared’s college application essay was entitled “Bullying and Its Underlying Assumptions”. He wasn’t going to give words power they didn’t inherently hold.

“Exactly as before then?”

“Sure.” Sex included apparently. Good.

“See you Friday on the reserve. At eight. Don’t be late.”

Step five: Maintain success in the long term.

***

The only reason Jared wasn’t late was because being late on purpose would attribute too much significance to Jensen’s words and attitude. So he was on time. The ride was fantastic. The sex quite good. The ejection expected. Jared resisted it. While he didn’t mind leaving, he did mind the attitude.

“I’ll need a few more minutes. Don’t ruin the afterglow.”

“Suit yourself.”

And just like that Jared felt better. This may work out yet.

***

A pattern developed. It took six more months to get Jensen to stop being rude, but eventually Jared and Jensen found a balance. It was another year after that when Jared got the news he’d been dreading for years and he decided that it was time to move on to step three on his larger plan: Ask for what you want.

“Jared, same terms, starting next week?”

Jared took a deep breath and exhaled a “No.”

“What do you mean, ‘no’?”

“I mean I’d like to re-negotiate.”

“No way.” The dragon, normally a pleasant drunk, looked comically pissed off.

“Ok. Then I should go get some sleep. I’ll leave you the bottle. This week is still on the house.”

The bar was deserted as it was a little after 4am. Jared and Jensen were sitting at a table, drinking. Jensen was as close to sloshed as he came. Jared was sober.

“So what do you want?”

“First, I have some questions, if you don’t mind.”

“I mind.”

“No you don’t. You just don’t like that I want to change the terms.”

“Of course I don't. Like I don’t know what you’re doing. If I renegotiate now, next year you’ll want something more, and more, and more. Not gonna happen.”

“I think you’ll like the thing I want.”

“Right.”

“Promise. I’ll ask the questions now. I hope that’s ok. You seriously don’t have to answer, but I promise I’m not just messing with you or trying to take advantage.”

“What do I get in return?” Right. Dragons. Negotiations-R-Us.

“If you let me ask the questions, one month of drinks on the house. Every question you answer is another month. Alright with you?”

Jensen peered at him, looking cooperative at last. “Go on then.”

“Is it correct that dragons have hoards?”

“Of course we do. And I don’t like this line of questioning. Be very careful.”

“Are all treasures inanimate?”

“No.”

“Can you give me three examples of a possible animate treasure that a dragon might keep?”

“I can.” Jensen grinned drunkenly.

“What are three possible animate treasures that a dragon might keep?”

“Princesses. Prized horses. Souls.”

“Souls? Seriously?”

“Yes. Souls. Seriously.”

Jared took a long breath. “Ok, last question before I present my offer: can a treasure negotiate the terms of its possession?”

“I see where you’re going with this. You _were_ dropped on your head as a baby.”

“I wasn’t. Not on the head. But if you know what I’m offering, are you interested?”

“You, joining my hoard, in return for free drinks. It’s stupid.”

“It is. Are you interested? The bar would basically be yours.”

“I suppose. Though it depends on the terms.”

“What terms would you be interested in?”

“Sole possession. Control over your travel: my treasures don’t go gallivanting about on their own. Veto on any visitors you may get. Access to medical files. Right to end your life. Correction: a right to do anything I want to you, including ending your life. Your agreement to any tasks I assign to you, like continuing to run the bar, for one.” Jensen peered at him with curiosity in his eyes. “I really wouldn’t have taken you for one of the crazy ones. I try to stay away from those.”

“Well, some crazy can be hidden.” Jared’s mouth twisted unpleasantly.

“Jared, what is this about?”

Jared sighed. “Protection. I may have some seriously bad people after me. And some very serious debts. The kind that don’t get paid off with money.”

“What did you do?”

“Many things. I was very ambitious once upon a time.”

“Apparently you still are. Who are the people, what are they after and how come they haven’t come to collect yet? Answer Jared.” Jensen still looked drunk, but he was becoming more and more menacing as well.

“If you take the deal, you find out. If not, I’d rather not tell.”

“You need me. You cultivated this whole relationship to get this deal. Tell me.”

“I need you. But I won’t tell you without the deal. Negotiation is one thing, surrender another. You’re a dragon, you understand this.”

Jensen sat in silence for at least a minute, contemplating Jared. A look of some mixed emotion on his face, he said, “Fine, let’s make a deal.”

“Of all the things you’ve mentioned as your terms, I would ask to amend only one: the right to do anything you want to me. I would appreciate limiting it so that you don’t torture me, mentally or physically, not damage me, and not degrade me. Killing me is fine, if there is a good reason for it. I would also like to add a requirement that any transfer of ownership has to include the new owner agreeing to the same terms.”

“So you don’t mind being killed, but you mind being hurt.”

“Yes.”

“Seriously.”

“Yeah.”

“I’ve mentioned you being a sissy before.”

“To each their demons. I am a ‘sissy’. I know the word is supposed to be degrading, but it basically means being sane and careful to me.”

Jensen didn’t respond to that. “Who decides what “torture” is, what “damage” is, what “degradation” is, and what a “good reason” is?”

“The Oxford dictionary. All these things have been defined before. I looked, and the definitions there are fine with me.”

“I’m beginning to see how you got into trouble. I’ll take the terms. And Jared, I’m not doing this to get a treasure. You need the help.”

“Yes, I do. Thank you.”

“This deal should be written out. I’ll get the lawyers on it tomorrow. You want to move tonight or wait till tomorrow?”

“Tonight would be great.”

“Are the people after you expected to arrive here soon?”

“I don’t know. I got a warning a month ago. But it’s been quiet since.”

“Alright. Tonight it is. Go get the things you need for a night.”

And that was how Jared moved to the Dragon Reserve. And became Jared Ackles.

***

The End


End file.
